Sweet
by generalsleepy
Summary: The Daroga feeds Raoul Iranian desserts. Daroga/Raoul. Just a bit of shameless fluff.


Raoul sat cross-legged on the settee and looked vaguely into space. He'd tried to kill time by reading a book, but his mind kept wandering.

He almost always met Hamid at his apartment on Thursdays at three o'clock. Darius, his usual laconic self, showed him in, before saying that he would be in his study for the evening, and that while Hamid was out of the house currently, he should be back within the hour. Raoul was anxious to know where he was exactly, but he felt awkward pressing the issue.

So, he settled himself in the sitting room and waited. He could just hear Hamid teasing him for youthful impatience as he looked at the clock every five or so minutes. He also hadn't eaten since that morning, knowing that they usually had a light meal with their tea. Now his stomach was rumbling uncomfortably.

He'd only managed to make it through a few pages of the book of sonnets when he heard the door open. Raoul snapped to his feet, stumbling and almost managing to fall on his face. He decided it would probably be silly to rush to the door like an excited little boy. Instead, he stood fidgeting in the middle of the room.

After what was probably a minute, but felt longer, Hamid stepped around the corner.

"Hello!" Raoul chirped, immediately failing at sounding ridiculously excitable.

"Hello, Raoul," Hamid said with a smile. Raoul noticed that he was carrying a large cardboard box. He gently set it down on the coffee table, before looping his arms around Raoul's waist. "I hope you haven't been waiting too long."

"Not long," Raoul answered, even though the hour had been non-stop frustration. Raoul rested his hands on Hamid's hips and kissed him.

Hamid pulled away quicker than he would have liked, though. "I didn't think that I would be out so long, but I hope that it will be worth it."

"Is that what you were out getting?" he said, gesturing at the box.

"Mhm." He led Raoul over to the couch and sat down beside him. (Raoul obviously didn't need help taking the few steps, but he oddly enjoyed when Hamid would take charge of him in these little things). Once they were both sitting, Hamid leaned over to open the box. Curious and eager, Raoul watched as he opened the cover to reveal an array of what looked like cookies, pastries, and sweets that he didn't recognize.

"What are these?"

"I mentioned earlier that lovely women in who immigrated to Paris recently from Iran. Well, it turns out she is quite the talented baker. I was able to provide her with the funds to purchase some uncommon ingredients and for her time, and she agreed to prepare us some traditional Persian desserts."

Raoul grinned. "That's wonderful!" He remembered a few times when Hamid had wistfully mentioned foods, particularly desserts, that he missed from home. He knew that Hamid had to be even more excited than his smile showed.

"Indeed." He considered the pile of confections a moment, before gingerly picking up a light brown, diamond-shaped pastry. He turned and held it out to Raoul. "Open up, dearest."

Raoul immediately complied, opening his mouth just enough to fit the dessert.

"It's Iranian _baklava_. Pistachios, almonds, rosewater, a dash of cardamom. Don't think you have to enjoy it just because I do. I imagine it could be an acquired taste for someone not used to it."

Raoul started to speak to protest, but Hamid raised a gently chiding finger. He took the hint to open his mouth again.

Looking like there was nothing he would rather be doing at that exact moment, Hamid put part of the treat between Raoul's lips. "Bite, love."

Raoul did as he was told. As he pulled off the little bit of _baklava_ , a mixture of strange flavors exploded on his tongue. Raoul considered as he chewed.

"Remember that you don't have to like it just to humor me," Hamid said.

Raoul shook his head. "No, this is…" He swallowed. "That was delicious!" He rolled the remaining taste around his mouth. "It's a little spicy."

"That would be the cardamom. Would you like another?"

Raoul nodded.

"Wonderful. Open." He picked up a short, tube-shaped pastry with a crispy-looking surface. It was small enough that he popped the whole thing into Raoul's mouth. When he bit down he found it was a piece of sweet fried dough, a bit like a beignet, but with a unique flavor. " _Bamiyeh_ ," Hamid explained as Raoul chewed.

"It tastes like… maybe honey, or...?"

"That's probably the saffron."

"It's delicious. Thank you."

"You're welcome, love. More?" At Raoul's nod, he reached for another of the sweets. Raoul didn't have to be told to open his mouth.

Hamid proceeded to feed Raoul little bites of the various desserts, giving the name and a quick description of each. There were a few that he liked more than others, but overall everything was, as he kept repeating lamely, delicious, and different from anything he'd ever tasted. When he bit into the soft nougat Hamid caused _gaz_ , Raoul outright moaned, provoking a laugh from Hamid. He'd previously only fed Raoul a bit of each treat at a time, but that time he indulged him with a second bite.

After Hamid fed him the last bit of a piece of _qottab_ , Raoul wrapped his lips around his fingertip and sucked lightly.

Hamid gave a fond smirk. "If I didn't know better, I'd say that you knew exactly what you were doing." He slowly withdrew his finger, Raoul just barely licking his tongue across the pad of his finger. Hamid dragged his thumb over Raoul's lips on the faint pretense of wiping away sugar and crumbs. "Maybe later, dearest."

Only after being fed a few more sweets, did Raoul realize with a lurch of guilt what he was doing. "Oh, no. I'm sorry. I've been eating all of your food, and I didn't even think. I'm sorry."

Hamid tsked. He tapped a finger against Raoul's lips. "Now, don't you start. Just watching you enjoy is better than any confection. And, it's not as if you've eaten every crumb." He could clearly tell that Raoul still felt guilty for his gluttony. "Here," he said. He twisted off a bit of _baklava_ between his thumb and forefinger. "We'll share a bit."

Raoul opened his mouth to let him insert the piece of pastry. As soon as it was behind Raoul's teeth, Hamid covered his lips with his own.

Raoul let out a little noise of surprise. Hamid's tongue darted out to taste the baklava. Raoul instinctively met the kiss, his tongue moving against Hamid's. The sweet, spicy taste permeated their mouths. When Hamid pulled away, he was smiling broadly. Raoul started to giggle and somehow managed to choke on the tiny bit of food. Thankfully, he was able to cough around it, before Hamid had to thump him on the back. Embarrassment added to the heat rising in his cheeks for other reasons.

Hamid smiled in affectionate amusement. He ran his thumb over Raoul's lip again. "Now, I can confirm just what I suspected."

"Hm?"

"You are the sweetest thing I've ever had."

Even Raoul, who had been told multiple times he could be eye-rollingly sentimental, knew that was ridiculously saccharine. It didn't matter, though, as his heart swelled with almost childish happiness. He wrapped his arms around Hamid and kissed him.

Hamid smiled into the kiss as he threaded his fingers through Raoul's hair. The tastes of cardamom, saffron, and sugar lingered in their mouths when they deepened the kiss.

"Thank you," Raoul said softly after they'd pulled apart.

Hamid found a crumb stuck to the edge of Raoul's mustache with his finger. He pressed the fingertip to Raoul's slightly sticky lips. "Thank you, dearest."


End file.
